Phil Jackson returns to Knicks as team president

New York Knicks new team president Phil Jackson listens to a question during a news conference where he was introduced, at New York's Madison Square Garden, Tuesday, March 18, 2014.

NEW YORK — Phil Jackson stepped to the lectern in the lobby of Madison Square Garden without a script, and while his title for his introduction Tuesday was Knicks team president, he immediately took on the role of salesman.

For a franchise saddled with a self-inflicted image problem, the most important thing Jackson — with no front office experience — can deliver is the credibility that comes with the 13 NBA championship rings he has accumulated and the soothing Zen Master happy talk.

It is vital to a disillusioned fan base, which would be handed a connection to the last championship the Knicks won 41 years ago — and also be sold throwback T-shirts adorned with Jackson’s name and his old No. 18. And maybe most important of all right now, he is tasked with delivering a sales pitch to Carmelo Anthony.

Anthony has been the lone star attraction in a disappointing and troubled season, but the defending NBA scoring champ will be a free agent this summer. In his first sales pitch, Jackson spoke positively about building around Anthony — even if a strong pitch from Jackson is not enough to make the forward stay.

“No doubt,” Jackson said. “There’s no doubt about Carmelo being one of the top scorers in the league, maybe the best individual isolation player in the game. I have no problems with committing to saying Carmelo is in the future plans.

“I think there are a number of things I see Carmelo doing as he moves forward, and I think I was on record saying a year ago that I think Carmelo, as great a player as he is, still has another level he can go to. And I hope together, with the team we create, he can get there.”

Anthony has carefully navigated his path to free agency, saying all the right things about a desire to stay in New York while also not committing to the Knicks — or ruling out any other potential landing spots. While he has drawn the ire of coaches in the past who claimed he wanted to play his way, Anthony said Monday that he willingly would take on a role in Jackson’s triangle offense — doing whatever it takes to win.

Jackson had not spoken to Anthony yet, but he pointed out that Anthony has taken a lesser role in the past.

“Carmelo’s had a load to carry this year, obviously the scoring load, and he’s remarkable in that,” Jackson said. “He showed in the last Olympics that coming off the bench and playing a role as a bench player on a magnificent team that won a gold medal, that he can play a role if he has to play a role.

“I think he’s a basketball player, and that’s what players want to be able to do. They want to be able to cut, to pass, to be in different spots on the floor. To attack or to play. I think that Carmelo will be just fine. I see no problem in it.”

The sales pitch to Anthony isn’t just a spot in the offensive schemes that Jackson adheres to or the seven offensive principles that he preaches. Anthony will turn 30 years old in May and after 12 arduous seasons in the NBA, does he want to risk what could be the last contract of his career to a rebuilding situation?

For Anthony to buy in he will have to believe, and the Knicks are basing the belief on Jackson — and the notion that despite a history that says it won’t happen, Garden chairman James Dolan will let the basketball people do their jobs without interference.

Asked if he was going to cede the power and authority to Jackson, Dolan said, “Uh, willingly and gratefully. Yeah.”

That will come as a salve to an angry fan base, especially since Dolan followed that by admitting he is no basketball expert — a point already known to many fans, including those who have a protest planned for today outside Madison Square Garden.

“First off, the two gentlemen to my left here are the experts in basketball,” Dolan said, gesturing to Jackson and Steve Mills, who was referred to as general manager after losing his title of team president to Jackson. “I am by no means an expert in basketball. I’m a fan, but my expertise lies in managing companies and new businesses.

“So I think I’m a little out of my element when it comes to the team. I’ve found myself in a position where I’ve needed to be more a part of the decision making for a while. It wasn’t something necessarily that I wanted to do. But as chairman of the company, I felt obligated to do it.

“I’m happy now that we have the team of Phil and Steve to do that, and my whole job here now, is supporting them to win a championship. That’s a lot easier than what I’ve had to do in the past.”

The usually silent and secretive Dolan made the rounds afterward on sports talk shows, explaining that he didn’t talk in recent years because he didn’t have an answer to the team’s troubles. But that silence seemed about right since the job now falls to Jackson to make the problems right.